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Air Transportation

RAND research on air transportation has examined a wide range of topics, including air traffic control, air safety and security, fuel systems, and accident investigations.

Blog

Air Travel Data to Predict COVID Risk, Heatwave Planning, Caregiver Time Off: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on using air travel data to predict COVID risk, planning for a heat wave during the pandemic, why caregivers need time off, and more.

Jun 12, 2020
News Release

News Release

New Tool Employs Air Travel Data to Predict Global Spread of COVID-19

As the pandemic enters a new phase, punctuated by emerging hot spots and continuing global spread, a new RAND tool allows policymakers to predict regional risks of importing cases of COVID-19.

Jun 5, 2020
Report

A New RAND Tool Helps Analyze Commercial Air Travel Involving Infected Passengers

Researchers combine case data from Johns Hopkins University with detailed air travel data from the International Air Transport Association to visualize how COVID-19 infections and commercial air travel have interacted to export infection risk across the world.

Jun 5, 2020
Report

By January 31, 2020, at Least 1.5 Daily Infected Passengers Were Originating in China

By late January 2020, infections of COVID-19 were likely being exported from China, via commercial air travel, on a daily basis.

Jun 5, 2020
Report

Air Passenger Transmission Risk to GCC Countries Originated from Outside the Region

Analyses contradict the idea that Iran was most responsible for the spread of COVID-19 to Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

Jun 5, 2020
Report

COVID-19 Cases in China Were Likely 37 Times Higher Than Reported in January 2020

Based on officially reported cases in China in January 2020, the odds of the novel coronavirus appearing by January 22, 2020, in Japan, Thailand, South Korea, the United States, and Taiwan—as it did—would have been minuscule.

Jun 5, 2020
Report

Decisionmakers Should Base Travel Restrictions on Infection Rates Per Capita and Air Traffic Levels

Countries with modest numbers of confirmed cases can still represent the greatest risks of virus exportation to the United States if those countries have relatively high active case rates per capita and high levels of connectivity to the United States.

Jun 5, 2020
Report

Small Unmanned Aerial System Adversary Capabilities

It is difficult to detect, identify, classify, and—consequently—counter nefarious small unmanned aerial systems (sUASs), particularly in urban areas. As the U.S. Department of Homeland Security prepares for this potential threat, it will need to know the types of threat scenarios in which these systems could be used, which design elements are likely to be exploited by a nefarious actor, and which technologies and capabilities may be available in the near future.

Mar 12, 2020
Blog

Coronavirus Outbreak, Drones, the U.S. Power Grid: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the intensifying coronavirus outbreak, cyber threats from drones, the vulnerabilities of the U.S. power grid, and more.

Mar 6, 2020
Report

How to Analyze the Cyber Threat from Drones

Unmanned aerial systems—drones—have become more common, more readily available, and more sophisticated. And they have new capabilities, such as increased data collection and autonomous behavior. Their cybersecurity implications demand a coherent strategy.

Mar 5, 2020
Blog

U.S.-Turkish Relations, Airports, Opioids: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the future of the U.S.-Turkish partnership, helping America's commercial airports meet rising demand, the opioid crisis, and more.

Jan 17, 2020
News Release

News Release

Changes in Funding, Finance Policies Could Help U.S. Airports Prepare for Future Demand

Changes in federal policies could help ensure U.S. commercial airports are able to draw on sufficient and stable sources of revenue to maintain existing capacity, accommodate growth and support a safe, sustainable national airspace system in the coming decades.

Jan 14, 2020
Report

U.S. Airport Infrastructure Funding and Financing

Passenger air travel is at an all-time high, and demand for it is expected to rise. Will current levels of spending under existing federal policies be sufficient to enable commercial airports to make the infrastructure investments needed to meet that demand?

Jan 14, 2020
Report

Report

U.S. Airport Infrastructure Funding and Financing: Issues and Policy Options Pursuant to Section 122 of the 2018 Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act: Executive Summary

Passenger air travel is at an all-time high, and airports are investing in the infrastructure needed to meet demand. This document summarizes the full report's review of the federal government's role in airport infrastructure funding and financing.

Jan 14, 2020
Report

Acquisition and Use of MANPADS Against Commercial Aviation: Risks, Proliferation, Mitigation, and Cost of an Attack

This report provides a summary of the risks, proliferation, costs of man-portable air defense system attacks against commercial aviation targets. It also presents mitigation options against such an attack.

Dec 30, 2019
Report

What Correctional Institutions Need to Address Security Challenges

Some threats to the security of correctional institutions, such as violence, escape attempts, and contraband, are as old as the institutions themselves. But as society and technology evolve, new threats are emerging, including hacking, synthetic drugs, and drones.

Jul 31, 2019
Commentary

Approaching a 'New Normal': What the Drone Attack in Venezuela Portends

The attempt to assassinate Venezuelan President Maduro showed that drones are easy to use and difficult to defend against. Commercial off-the-shelf technology is easy to acquire. It is imperative that counterterrorism specialists begin planning a robust response to the threat.

Aug 13, 2018
Commentary

New Technologies Could Help Small Groups Wreak Large-Scale Havoc

Lone wolves or small groups could use emerging technologies, such as drones or AI, for nefarious purposes. The threat is even greater when these technologies are used along with disinformation spread over social media.

Jun 18, 2018
Report

Options for Flying Contraband into North Korea

Activist groups in South Korea are seeking improvements in the balloons they use to carry political, religious, and humanitarian materials across the border into North Korea. Balloon delivery techniques have evolved and some have started using hexacopter drones. How effective are these methods?

Apr 2, 2018
Research Brief

What's the Buzz? Delivery Drones Are Here

Delivery drones are fast becoming a reality. As many as three million commercial drones could be flying in U.S. airspace by 2020. The prospect of a package arriving at your door in a matter of minutes is exciting, but what do we know about the hidden costs, the safety concerns, and the trade-offs?

Mar 5, 2018

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RAND Topic:
Air Transportation

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